A wearable band that uses artificial intelligence technology to monitor hospital patients’ vital signs in real-time could be key to addressing healthcare staffing shortages across WA. The bio-band technology, created by WA company Medivitals, can continuously monitor a person’s heart rate, temperature, blood pressure and oxygen saturation levels. In a recent trial, supported by funding from the State Government’s Future Health Research and Innovation Fund, 30 patients transitioning from intensive care to a general ward were provided with the wearable bands. This allowed nurses and doctors to monitor all their patients’ vital signs in real-time, and it sent alerts if a patient’s condition deteriorated. The groundbreaking technology comes as WA faces a staffing crisis in hospitals, with only 6.6 full-time-equivalent nurses and midwives per 1000 people for 2021-22. WA was also estimated to be in a shortage of 585 full-time equivalent doctors in 2024. Medivitals co-founder Yogi Kanagasingam said the technology was saving crucial time for nurses and doctors. “This means they can get a reading from each and every patient on their dashboard in the central station and they can respond to those whose vital signs are going abnormal or deteriorating,” he said. “This means better patient care because if there’s staff shortages then people can be managed more efficiently.” Professor Kanagasingam said it was easier for the patients as they did not need invasive monitoring, and avoided the need to be woken regularly. Medivitals is also working to use the technology for in-home care, in emergency wards, and to track dementia patients. The wristband has already been trialled in a hospital-in-the-home program for remote patient monitoring, potentially avoiding unnecessary hospital admissions. Professor Kanagasingam hopes the technology will enable real-time monitoring of patients in the emergency room, identifying people who are deteriorating and are more high-risk. “People have died while waiting in the emergency, so this will be another way to prevent that,” he said. Professor Warren Harding, Medivitals co-founder and an Australian Digital Health Agency board member, said the technology was the future of health care. “This can help revolutionise patient care across multiple settings, from hospital emergency departments to hospital-in-the-home programs,” Professor Harding said. “The device ensures that high-risk patients are identified and prioritised even before they reach a hospital bed. “This predictive approach addresses critical challenges such as bed capacity overcrowding and staff shortages while enhancing patient outcomes.” For those wary of AI technology, Professor Kanagasingam said patient data was securely stored at the hospita,l or locally within WA. “None of the patient’s data is transmitted, it’s purely vitals, so there’s no way a person can be identified,” he said.